222
by angry-eevee
Summary: "Keeping a clock in the common room had been a bad idea..."  T for swearing


_AN – While Sollux is bipolar, It is never really shown in the comic how he acts when he's in the Manic stage of the disorder, mostly focussing on the Depressive stage. I wanted to explore that. _

Keeping a clock in the common room had been a bad idea.

It was fine, if you could call it that, when interaction with Sollux had been little more than words on a screen. Karkat knew vaguely that the guy had mood swings, but never could he have imagined just how... messed up his friend could become until he spent time in his proximity. The oppressive environment of the Veil was taking its toll on everyone, and it hadn't seemed to affect Sollux worse than anyone else. Until it, suddenly, horribly, did.

It happened very suddenly. Sollux had been at his computer, his usual quiet, industrious coding seemingly consuming all thoughts. He'd been... very quiet recently, spending a lot of time alone. Karkat wouldn't admit how pleased he was when he saw Sollux had returned to the group, even though he had quietly declined Karkat's "group therapy" in trolling the humans.

They had been friends as long as he could remember, even though they had only met physically once or twice in their lives. It had initially shocked Karkat just how _thin_ Sollux was. The boy's clothes hung off him, and his hands and wrists were disturbingly bony, yellow veins clearly visible through his skin. His naturally high cheekbones and sharp jaw hid the thinness from his face, but Karkat could see it clearly in his hands, hands that were either typing so fast they blurred or stuffed into jeans pockets.

Karkat had tapped the Gemini on the shoulder, after attempts at speaking the boys name had not drawn him from his coding. The furious _tap-tap-tap _of the keyboard continued for a few seconds, and then stopped abruptly. Sollux snapped his head around, blinked twice, and fixed Karkat with a glassy smile.

"Hey KK. Thomething wrong?" Later, Karkat thought that those words had given off the tiniest echo of a plea – Sollux said his telepathy was purely physical, but Karkat was _sure_ that the words had been less a question than a statement.

"Just seeing how you are. You've been holed up in your respite block for fucking days." It was hard to tell if the Gemini was looking at him, with those eyes of his, but the set of Sollux's face made Karkat feel he was looking over his shoulder. Without knowing why, he turned. On the other side of the room were a few other trolls terminals, the horn pile, and the clock on the wall. Slowly and inorexibly, Karkats eyes drew to the clock hands. 2.20. A shiver went down his spine without him quite knowing why. He turned back to the other troll.

"Soll?"

"Of courth I'm ok, KK, what the hell could be wrong?" The answer came back nearly instantly after KK had spoken. The glassy smile remained on Sollux's gaunt face. That was another signal, Karkat had thought afterwards. Sollux rarely smiled.

"I don't know, just that we're stuck of some godforsaken asteroid in the middle of fucking nowhere." Karkat looked over his shoulder again. 2.21, and the second hand was just moving past the six, beginning its ascent towards a fresh minute.

"So..." now Karkat's voice was tinged with worry, eyes watching the second hand. "You're just peachy being one of the last of our kind on this desolate hunk of rock?" Five seconds.

"Sollux?" He turned back to his friend.

Four seconds.

"Sollux? For fucks sake look at me!"

Two seconds. One.

Sollux moved faster than Karkat had ever seen anyone move before, and had him in a brief and bonegrinding hug. There was much more power in those emaciated arms than there should be. When Sollux spoke, the words came out just fast enough to make sense, if barely.

"Hey what ith there to be worried about I mean theriously I feel fucking FANTATHTIC KK like I could do anything you know?" With the same speed, Sollux began to walk around Karkat in circles, still babbling. Twice clockwise, twice anticlockwise, before Karkat grabbed his shoulders.

"Soll, what the hell?" Everyone had turned from their monitors at Karkat's yelp in reaction to the sudden hug and were watching the pair, frowning. Karkat glared at the Gemini, who was snapping his fingers; twice on one hand, twice on the other.

"What the hell what the hell what KK? What the hell are YOU talking about?" He brushed Karkat's hands from his shoulders irritably. Before he could resume his circling, Karkat took his arm.

"Sollux, I - "

Karkat hit the far wall, red and blue psiionic energy still crackling around him. Sollux advanced on his prone form.

"Did I fucking thay you could touch me KK no I don't think I did that'th funny 'coth you STILL FUCKING DID!"

Other trolls had got up now, some to go to Karkat, others still standing with open mouths. Equius advanced on Sollux from behind, squaring his shoulders.

"You will cease this disruptive behooviour at once, lowblood." He said, placing a hand on his shoulder, nearly covering it. Sollux snarled and a lash of energy wrenched the bluebloods arm back painfully.

"What ith it with all the fucking touching ith it "letth touch Thollux" day no one told ME!" Even Equius backed off at his tone of voice. Karkat, propped up by Kanaya, looked at his friend. Sollux was floating a few inches from the floor, crackles of energy coruscating over his body. The snarl had gone, replaced by the disturbingly glassy grin.

"Hey you know what why the fuck are we all jutht moping around on thith meteor leth go fight Jack!" He rose a little higher. "Fuck it you know how I'm feeling now I don't NEED you guyth I'll go fight him mythelf!" He laughed, as if only he knew the joke. Kanaya took a deep breath.

"Sollux, Be Reasonable. There Is No Way You Can Face Jack. You Will Die."

And he was in front of her. No one even saw him move.

"You think tho Kan? Really?" Kanaya turned her face away from the fixed smile. "Then should we jutht thit here doing fuck all I need to do thomething Kan or I'm gonna go fucking CRAZY!"

And he was at the transportaliser. And there was a flash of green. And there was silence.

Silence.

"Wwhat the actual fuck?" Eridan lowered his gun, having had it trained on Sollux as soon as he had addressed Kanaya.

Karkat groaned, rubbing his head. He was still seeing stars, but he pulled himself away from Kanaya and walked forward unsteadily, ignoring her noise of alarm.

"I'm going to find him." He held up a hand as the others protested. "I'm going to find him. He's my best friend."

He wasn't hard to find.

Sollux sat in the middle of his respite block, clutching his knees. He rocked slightly back and forth in the dark. Karkat switched on the light, but promptly turned it off when the yellow blooded troll cried out in alarm. Darkvision destroyed, Karkat moved slowly towards the center of the room, then got on his hands and knees. Sollux had his eyes shut, and no light escaped from them.

"Soll. Can I touch you?" There was a sharp intake of breath in the dark. Then...

"...yeth."

Karkat crawled forward, hand outstretched until he touched the shaking body. He gently shuffled into a position where he could wrap an arm around those bony shoulders, drawing Sollux towards his chest. He was shaking like a leaf in a gale, breath hitching occasionally, fingers drumming on his shins.

"I'm thorry." His voice was a whisper, catching in his throat.

"It's ok."

"It'th not. I could have hurt you."

"I said it's ok, you douchebag." There was a quiet chuckle, which sounded only half forced.

"KK?"

"Yeah?"

"Are we thtill friendth?" Karkat reached up and ruffled the Gemini's hair in the dark.

"Of course we are, dumbass. Will you tell me wha- " but the body beside him had loosened entirely, and Karkat had to stop him falling to the floor. Sollux's breathing had become regular and gentle.

"... you're fucking asleep. Perfect." Karkat sighed, and lay down next to the sleeping troll, one arm thrown over the skinny shoulders protectively.

"You're an idiot, Captor." He mumbled, shutting his eyes.


End file.
